


To Stay

by Transformersfan123



Series: Dark Secrets [3]
Category: Transformers (Bay Movies)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-13
Updated: 2018-01-13
Packaged: 2019-03-04 09:40:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,339
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13361862
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Transformersfan123/pseuds/Transformersfan123
Summary: Sequel to Moving On. Sam's made his decision. He's going to stay with the Autobots and take his chances. He is still hiding his own secrets from those he calls friends, afraid of the judgement of those who aren't. And as time passes, will the aquisition of the abilities Primus promised drive Sam crazy or will he finally fully trust those who have kept him safe and sane thus far?





	1. Chapter 1

Sam walked out of the shelter of the trees, hesitated for a moment, and glanced back at Primus, who smiled encouragingly. The boy took a deep breath and headed for the rubble that was the base. He was halfway there when First Aid, who was tending to Sunstreaker's diced up arm, looked up and saw him.

"Sam you're alright!" First Aid yelled, causing the mechs digging through the rubble to stop and look up at him.

"Sammy!" Bumblebee crowed, hurrying over to scoop up his charge; Sam noticed energon leaking out of his wrist, making it look like the mech had cut himself.

"I'm fine, Bee," Sam assured him.

"You've got to stop scaring me like that," Bumblebee said, sounding breathless and frightened.

"What was that, anyways?" Sideswipe asked.

"Earthquake," Ironhide rumbled.

"But we're nowhere near a fault line," Ratchet said slowly as he moved to scan Sam.

"So?" First Aid asked.

"So it shouldn't have happened," Optimus replied.

"What could have caused it?" Bumblebee asked thoughtfully.

"Why don't you ask the human? It is his planet. Oh wait, the human's too stupid to know, right?" Prowl asked sarcastically.

"As a matter of fact, this human does know! It was Cybertronian in origin!" Sam spat, glaring at Prowl.

Prowl gave a barking laugh. "Really? And how is that? Did Primus decide to shake things up?"

"No, Primus isn't the earth mech. He's the water mech. It was Unicron that caused the earthquake," Sam said angrily.

There was silence as they all stared at him. Even Prowl had no comment. Optimus moved to Sam's eye level, his optics confused.

"What do you mean by water mech and earth mech?" he asked gently.

With everybody staring at him, Sam's face warmed and he crossed his arms and looked away, suddenly regretting saying anything. They were probably just going to laugh it off, just like Bumblebee had.

Bumblebee suddenly spoke. "That dream you mentioned before…it wasn't really a dream, was it?"

"What dream?" Optimus asked, straightening up.

"He mentioned a water mech to me before," Bumblebee said slowly. "Back when Prowl and the others had just gotten here. He said it was a dream."

"I thought it was," Sam admitted quietly. "But it wasn't."

"Any particular reason the Chaos Bringer caused the earthquake?" Ironhide asked.

"You mean Unicron?" Sam asked and Ironhide nodded. "Why not say it then?"

"It is said that it brings his wrath if you say his name too much."

"I'd believe that," Sam said with a nod. "He's got quite the temper. Especially if things don't go his way."

"Well?" Prowl asked darkly. "The earthquake?"

"Oh. I…kinda told him…no," Sam mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck.

"No? What did he ask?" Bumblebee asked, sounding alarmed.

"He told me to choose between him and Primus. I told him that I would never choose him."

"So you chose Primus?" Optimus asked.

"No. I just told Unicron no. I didn't choose Primus."

"Maybe not directly, young one, but indirectly, you did," that warm, kind voice said as said mech appeared, drawing water from the earth to form himself.

Every mech there cried out and dropped to their knees. Sam was jolted by the sudden movement and yelped, attempting to jump down. Primus caught him and chuckled.

"They always do that. Even Decepticons do it," he said with a smile.

"With all due respect, sir," Prowl said suddenly. "Why _him_?"

Primus looked at Prowl and his smile softened. "Because he is a very special individual. Just like you."

Prowl's optics turned purple then he turned away and crossed his arms, not looking at anybody. Sam shrugged it off and looked back up at Primus. This time, the water was colored a nice silver, with black and red Cybertronian symbols decorating the frame. Sam found it fit the mech.

"So what does it mean that he indirectly chose you?" Ironhide asked, his voice, for once, meek.

Primus smiled at the usually feisty mech. "It means that the changes I have planned for him will take hold slowly. They will happen, but much, much more slowly than if he decides to choose me directly."

"Can he still do so?" Optimus asked.

"Anytime he wishes," Primus said happily. "But I shan't force him and I don't want any of you to try and force him either. It is his choice and his choice alone."

"Yes Primus," they all chorused, save Prowl who had walked away and was sitting sullenly by himself.

"Good. Now, I want you all to be understanding of him and protect him from Unicron's attacks when I'm not around. Because he will attack you."

Optimus stood, forcing back a wave of shyness, which was unusual for him. "But Primus, how are we to fight a god?"

"I am so glad you asked," Primus said, a gleam in his optics.

He raised his hand and tendrils of light arched off of him and wrapped around each mech. Electricity surged across them, making all of the Autobots jerk and spasm. Sam watched with wide eyes while they were reformatted right in front of him.

When they were done, they looked the same, but Sam could feel the power coming off of each of them. Sunstreaker was looking his body up and down for scratches on his paint, but it actually looked like each of them got a new paint job to go along with the upgrades.

Sam felt more than saw Primus disappear and dropped to the ground, glad he had been expecting it. Primus was over talking to Prowl while Optimus and others tried to get a grip on their new abilities. Sam pretty much ignored them. His decision to stay was weighing on his mind. His friends, no, his _family_ was going to be attacked by a madmech. How could he live with himself?

"Sam, what's the matter?" Bumblebee's hologram of himself asked, appearing beside him.

"I decided to stay," Sam said quietly. "I thought about leaving, but I just couldn't. You guys have understood everything so far, so I figured you'd understand…this Unicron and Primus thing."

"So what's wrong?"

"I'm putting you all in danger! That's what!" Sam snapped. "That maniac got mad enough and an _earthquake_ happened! It destroyed the base. We have to rebuild! Not to mention half of you are still wounded!"

Bumblebee's optics were kind. "Sam, we have been at war for millennia. We have been through situations like this before. Not completely like this, mind you, but similar. We can…probably handle this."

"Probably?" Sam asked dryly.

"Well, we've never fought the Chaos Bringer before," Bumblebee said with a shrug.

"I said no!" Prowl suddenly shouted, standing up and outright glaring at Primus.

Primus didn't look upset. He just looked a little sad. "Prowl, please," he said softly, following Prowl as he walked back over to the other mechs.

"No," Prowl spat. "Now leave me alone."

"As you wish," Primus said gently then the outline and colors disappeared and the water splashed to the ground and spread over the dirt.

"What was that about?" Sunstreaker asked. "I mean, you _yelled_ at _Primus_!"

"Drop it," Prowl snarled and turned to go and sit where he had been before.

"Well, we had better start cleaning up this mess," Optimus said. "We're going to need you with truck forms to haul most of this to the dump. It's all unsalvageable."

"We're also going to need the humans."

Sam groaned inwardly, but kept his face still. This wasn't going to be fun.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The way they were staring at him was disconcerting. He could feel the weight of their pity, too. It made him angry, but he didn't move from his perch on Bumblebee's shoulder. He had managed to dig his backpack out of the rubble and had snuck away to put on fresh makeup. Ironhide was the most displeased about it, but he understood why Sam felt like he had to do it, so he didn't say anything. The boy was also wearing a hooded jacket. He, of course, also had the hood up. It was William's wife that called him down.

Without thinking, he jumped down into Bumblebee's hands then down to the ground. She started when she saw his face and the gothic makeup that stained it and looked like she had changed her mind.

"Yeah?" he asked, hands jammed in his pockets.

"I…I, well," she stuttered, obviously disconcerted.

Sam sighed. "I'm not going to bite. Just say what you want."

"I wanted to say I'm sorry."

Sam almost winced. Almost. "About?"

"About what happened to you."

All movement froze, human and Autobot alike. Sam tensed and looked away from her.

"Thanks," he finally ground out. "But that doesn't change anything."

"I know," she said gently, then hugged him.

Sam, who was only used to affection from the Autobots, was at a loss on what to do. He just stood there until she released him. He heard Bumblebee make a noise that meant he thought it was cute, and Sam turned his face up to glare at him.

"Shut it, Bee," he growled.

"I'm sorry Sam, but I can't help it," Bumblebee said fondly. "It is…nice, to see somebody _human_ care about you."

Sam then said something out loud that he probably shouldn't have. "I don't want any humans to care about me."

There was more silence at that, but Sam really couldn't care less. It was the truth, even though it probably hurt. Humans had done nothing but hurt him all his life. Why should they be any different now?

"Sam," Bumblebee sighed, kneeling down to lift him up again.

"I don't care what they think. It's the truth," Sam said matter-of-factly.

"That's a little harsh, don't you think?" William asked.

"Maybe, but if all _you_ received was pain from your own species, how would you feel about it?" Sam asked.

There was no reply, and Sam let his case rest. He could still feel their gazes on him, filled with pity and he knew they were wishing they could help. _I'm beyond help_ , he thought bitterly. He brought his mind back to the hidden cutting he'd been doing. He would tell the Autobots. Eventually.


	2. Chapter 2

Eventually came sooner than he liked. He had been caught by Bumblebee, of course, who had become alarmed and immediately took him to see Ratchet, who had become alarmed and told Optimus, who had become alarmed. It went this way until the entire base knew and Sam didn't like it. Ratchet was tending to the backs of his knees, which were terribly cut up. Sam just lay there miserably as he was tended to.

"At least you were using that knife I gave you," Ratchet said softly, breaking the tension.

Bumblebee huffed. "I still don't understand why he does this!"

"He still doesn't trust us, I bet," Ironhide sighed.

"It's not that I don't trust you," Sam finally groused, annoyed at being talked about like he wasn't there. "It's that I don't think you want to hear about my problems."

"How many times do we have to reassure you, Sam?"

"Daily would be nice," Sam replied.

"How about I ask you how you're feeling every day?" Bumblebee asked.

"That might work," the boy admitted.

"Then that's what I shall do!" Bumblebee exclaimed dramatically and Sam laughed.

Ratchet's holoform suddenly melted away and the medic's real body shifted. "There you are Sam. You may put your jeans back on."

Sam stood and slipped back into his pants, not looking at his friends. Optimus walked into the room and Sam flinched. He couldn't help it. He knew what was coming.

"Samuel," Optimus began.

"I know, I'm a horrible person," Sam sighed.

"You're not horrible Sam. You're troubled. There's a difference," Optimus said kindly. "Now I heard what you said about why you didn't tell us, and I agree wholeheartedly with what Bumblebee said. However, you may always come to me if you want, and what we talk about will be kept between us unless a medic is needed. Yes?"

"Okay Optimus," Sam said, nodding.

Sam was moving towards Bumblebee when First Aid cried out.

"Ratchet! Look at this!"

Ratchet turned quickly and looked at the screen, Optimus and Bumblebee doing the same.

"That's impossible," Ratchet said.

"Maybe something went wrong in the scan?" First Aid asked.

Sam frowned. "Um, an explanation would be nice."

"Hold still," Ratchet said as he turned and scanned him with a handheld scanner.

Another image popped up on the screen and they all stared at it. Ratchet had everybody stand away from him and scanned him again. Then the medic had him strip naked and scanned him again. Sam slid his boxers and jeans back on then strained to look at the screen. It was several pictures of his body. One was of him as he usually looked naked, another was of the muscles beneath his skin, a third was his organs and circulatory system, and a fourth was his skeletal system. On the one that was his bones, there were smatterings of something blue along the white.

"What's that blue stuff? Is that normal?" Sam asked.

Ratchet turned to look at him, but didn't answer. Bumblebee and Optimus stepped back and came to the other side of the medical berth. Bumblebee's holoform suddenly appeared and pressed its hands onto his shoulders.

"Ratchet, you're worrying me," Bumblebee said. "What's wrong with Sam? Why do you keep scanning him?"

The older medic stayed silent, so First Aid stepped forward. He hesitantly glanced at Ratchet then spoke.

"The blue on your bones is not normal, Sam," he said quietly.

"Is he sick?" Optimus asked, sounding worried himself. "Is the blue stuff cancer or something?"

"No. The blue colored spots aren't cancer," Ratchet finally said. "My repeated scans have picked up the same thing: metal. You have metal growing on your bones, or metal replacing your bones."

Bumblebee let out a squeal of shock and Optimus stepped back. Sam tried to feel panicked, but he didn't. Ratchet was studying him intently.

"So this is the change Primus was talking about," Sam said quietly.

"One of them, at least," Ratchet said with a nod. "But I believe I have bad news. The metal on your bones right now is just superficial, on the surface as it were. If my hunch is correct, you're going to be in pain once it starts moving deeper. And it will be horrible pain."

"I'm used to pain," Sam said with a shrug then gestured at his scarred chest. "I can take it."

Ratchet shook his head. "This is going to be agonizing. I'm going to start looking into making a painkiller for you. You're going to need it."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Boy had Ratchet been right. Sam woke up in the middle of the night two weeks later and he was paralyzed by pain. He couldn't even make a noise. It was a deep, deep pain that ached to his very bones, which was where it was coming from. Tears were sliding down his face and he wanted to scream, to writhe, to do _something_ , but all he could do was lie there. He did the only thing he could think of: he thought at Primus.

_Primus? Please! It hurts! Wake somebody up, Ratchet, Aid, Prime, Bee, even Prowl! Just wake somebody up and tell them what's going on!_

There was silence for a minute then a click and light flared out, hurting his eyes. There was a jolt and Optimus was suddenly up. He stood and looked around, noting everybody's position. His optics slid over Sam and he did a double take. He hurried over and leaned in close.

"Sam? Are you alright? Did you have a nightmare?"

Sam forced himself to shake his head, sending agony roiling through his body. He moaned, his body tense and Optimus finally seemed to understand.

"The metal!" he exclaimed to himself then scooped Sam up and turned the lights out before rousing Ratchet.

Ratchet brought out a Cybertronian needle and drained some of the buzzing liquid into a large human sized needle. He turned Sam over, raised his shirt and slid the needle into his back. There was a shot of electricity that went through him then the pain began to lessen bit by bit.

"You can go back and recharge, Optimus," Ratchet said. "I'll stay up with him."

"I'm worried about him. I'll stay up. I don't know how in the world he got the lights on, but I'm certainly glad he did."

"He couldn't move, Optimus. There's no way he got those lights on," Ratchet said.

"Then it had to be Primus," Optimus said with a nod. "He seems to have a soft spot for the boy."

"Don't we all?" Ratchet asked fondly.

"All but Prowl," Optimus said. "Even Sunstreaker is starting to like him."

"I wonder what his problem is," Ratchet said, using his holoform to clean the needle.

"I think the only one who knows that is Prowl himself."

Sam was relaxing into sleep when he saw a shadow move beside the dark doorway and, as Optimus and Ratchet talked obliviously, he thought he heard a soft whine followed by a sob.


	3. Chapter 3

Sam was really starting to hate Primus. Well, more specifically what Primus was doing to him. It made him hurt. All the freaking time. It was annoying and, quite obviously, painful. He sighed and got up, stretching slowly. His back ached. His spine was changing, and that meant that he couldn't move very fast. Some mornings he could hardly move at all. As if on cue, he was scooped up and set on a shoulder. He relaxed against the metal, which was, surprisingly, not yellow. It was grey.

"Jazz? Where's Bee?"

"He and everybody else had to go out on patrol today. You're with me and 'Hide for now. That cool?"

"Yeah," Sam said. "Just don't make me move too much, okay?"

"Still hurting?" Ironhide asked, gesturing for Jazz to bring him over to the dining area. The boy nodded in response to the question.

Sam thought about the intense rebuild of the large base that had happened. The Autobots were all stronger and faster thanks to Primus' gifts, and that had made it much easier. The humans had helped design the human parts of the base and had split the difference of the things that they needed. The results had been very nice. Sam sat down at the dining room table and froze.

"Pancakes?" he asked, a grin spreading across his face.

"We got some syrup yesterday when we were out after we had found out that we were going to be in charge of you 'morning sustenance intake.' We figured you deserve a treat," Jazz said with a wink.

"Does Ratchet know?"

"He will later, so use all the syrup you want now," Ironhide nodded.

Sam ate happily until he could eat no more, washing down the gooey sweetness with several glasses of milk so that Ratchet couldn't complain that everything wasn't healthy. He washed the dishes then was picked up by Ironhide and carried outside. There was a light rain falling and it felt nice on the boy's heated skin. He was set down on Ironhide's knee after the mech had crossed his legs.

"Ratchet might kill us, but I hope you enjoyed it," Jazz said, sending his holoform to sit beside him.

"I did. It's nice to have a break from my medic every once in a while," Sam said with a smile then it slowly faded. "Will I continue to eat human food?"

"No clue. But if that happens, you get to drink energon and other Cybertronian drinks," Jazz said with a nod.

"I think you'd enjoy their tastes," Ironhide added. "But don't think we're playing down how you would feel at having to lose such a big part of your life. It would be devastating to you."

Sam nodded. "I like eating human food. No offense, but tasting the same thing every time seems boring."

"We can mix it up with any number of spices, like rust or liquid metals of any type," Jazz explained. "Copper is my favorite. Tangy and just a hint of sweetness. Yum."

"Aluminum. Sour and delicious," Ironhide said, offlining his optics. "Hey, how about some energon, Jazz?"

"Sure. I ain't refueled in a while."

Ironhide handed Sam over to Jazz and hurried into the base. Jazz appeared behind Sam and started massaging his back, easing the pain he was feeling. They both talked over their energon and Sam relaxed as well as he could on Ironhide's leg. The pain made him ache horribly. He wished it would disappear…Suddenly both Jazz and Ironhide yelled. Sam opened his eyes to see the water mech.

"Hello Primus," Sam said angrily. "Given anybody else searing agony today?"

"You're not in that much pain," he replied.

"Maybe not right now, but there's a good bet I will be if I miss my shot."

"True. But Ratchet gave Ironhide you're shot and instructed him thoroughly on when and how to give it to you." Primus' optics were twinkling.

"May I ask a question, Great One?" Jazz asked politely.

"You may," Primus said with a nod, winking at Sam.

"Do you just sit around and watch us?"

"Yes. But I mainly watch Sam. He's a special youngling."

"Youngling? What's that, some new kind of insult?" Sam asked.

"No, it's the form of a Cybertronian after sparkling," Ironhide said.

"What's a sparkling?"

"Sparklinghood, which is the state of being a sparkling, is a period spanning many thousands of years where a Cybertronian is new to life. It is the equivalent of being a child. Younglinghood comes right after that, and it also spans many thousands of years. I'd tell you the exact amount of time, but I haven't done the math, so I'm not really sure," Ironhide added. "And I don't feel like doing the math."

"So he's calling me a teenager, but for Cybertronians?" Sam queried.

"Essentially yes," Jazz said with a laugh.

"So curious. That is good, for the most part," Primus praised. "You are such an interesting individual, Sam." He paused. "You know, we have to fix that. You can't go by 'Sam' forever."

"What?" Ironhide, Jazz, and Sam asked at the same time.

"I love the name, but when you all get the chance to go and rebuild Cybertron, which isn't soon, but it is going to happen, he's going to need a new name that won't confuse the mechs he'll meet."

"So you're going to rename me?"

"First of all, you're not being renamed. The Cybertronians are going to start offering names for you to select one. You will then use it on Cybertron, but you shall still have your Earth name. Second of all, I'm not among the ones who shall be offering names. I shall leave that pleasure to your friends."

Sam didn't have to look back to see the grins on Jazz and Ironhide's faces. He moaned and buried his face in his hands. "You are evil, Primus. Pure evil."

Primus laughed heartily at that. "You are quite funny."

Sam was suddenly poked, rather hard, by Ironhide. "Behave!" he hissed, glancing up at Primus.

"What?" Sam asked.

"He's right, mech," Jazz said, sounding very unlike himself. "Be polite."

Sam frowned and looked up at Primus. "What's their problem?"

"I am their maker, or the embodiment of their maker. The Allspark was my spark. After it was destroyed, I have been gathering my energies to create a new one. I'm in the process of doing that at the heart of Cybertron, my true body. For now, my consciousness is here, watching you."

"Why?" Sam burst out. "Why me? Why do _I_ have to suffer through all this?"

"Because Unicron chose you first," Primus said after a moment's pause, looking wary.

"Ch-chose me?" Sam asked. "Chose me for what?"

Primus sighed softly, pressing his hands together in a nervous gesture. "Well, Sam, you're not going to be happy about this."

Sam laughed bitterly. "Now Primus, when in my life have I been _happy_?"

"When you were with Optimus and his mechs. Before the others got here."

"That time was so brief though. Can it really be called happiness?"

Primus sighed again. "Yes it can. Now, according to ancient lore, Primus and Unicron came into existence blessed with incredible power. In the Before Time the two entities were friends, but the jolt into being caused them to become bitter enemies. Primus gave life to a race called Transformers. Unicron, jealous that he could not create life in the same way. So he took to corruption."

"What does this have to do with me?" Sam asked.

"The race of Transformers spread to inhabit many planets. Then war broke through with Megatron. Primus and Unicron both needed something to help. Primus, to stop the war, and Unicron, to exterminate all of his precious children. They both started searching. Searching for a way to get what they wanted. They both discovered the answer at around the same time. They needed vessels, small ones of great power. They searched many worlds, trying to find the perfect race to become what they needed. And then they came to Earth." He paused and blew out a breath. "And it all culminated into a single boy. You. Sam, you are the very first race of a new Transformer called a Mini-con."

Sam sat there in silence. He was a vessel. And he was going to be one of great power. He shivered.

"Sam?" Ironhide asked gently.

"I'm starting to hurt," Sam said dully. "Isn't it time for my shot?"

"Yes," Ironhide said. "But are you alright?"

Sam lowered his head. "I don't know. I just need to think about this."

"Okay then," Jazz said. "Now, let's get you your shot."


	4. Chapter 4

Somehow they had ended up alone together. Sam's stare was wary, Prowl's was slightly hostile. The mech finally moved first, crossing his arms.

"Go away. You have your little clearing, this hill is mine."

"I was just exploring," Sam said softly.

"Well, you found it, now go away."

Sam turned around and moved to leave, then he abruptly stopped. He spun around and walked right back over to Prowl and planted his feet.

"What?" Prowl demanded sullenly.

"You hate me. Why? What did I ever do to you?"

"You did nothing. It's what _they_ do to _you_."

"Care for me? Love me? Make me feel good about myself?"

"Yes!"

"Why would you care about that….Unless you never got it yourself," Sam answered himself. He looked up and hesitated then took a shot in the dark. "You were abused, too, weren't you?"

Prowl stiffened. "Shut up."

"You never told anybody and had to deal with it yourself."

"Shut up!"

"Optimus doesn't even know, does he?"

"SHUT UP!"

Prowl charged up his gun and pointed it directly at Sam. Sam looked at it thoughtfully. They stood there staring at each other for more than ten minutes. Then, Sam finally spoke.

"I forgive you."

Prowl looked dumbstruck. "What?"

"I forgive you."

"You do?" Prowl lowered his weapon and stared at Sam, confused and a little shocked. "But _why_?" he asked in a hurt voice. "Why would you forgive me after how horrible I've been? Especially since you now know why I was so mean. It's like, the worst thing ever."

"Because I remember how I felt before they found out. I was embarrassed and ashamed and angry. You are, too, I bet. But you're something else. You're jealous. I'm guessing you never told anybody and suffered through your abuse alone. But the one thing you always wanted, and still want—and I know this because it's all I ever wanted—was for somebody to hold you and make the nightmares go away. Make the pain go away. Am I hitting close to home here?"

Prowl dropped and began to whine, which Sam had discovered was the way Cybertronians cried. He sobbed, too, and they bubbled up from the depths of his being. Sam climbed up on his shoulder and wrapped his arms as far around Prowl's head as he could, which wasn't very far. Still, Prowl cupped his body in one of his hands and nuzzled him with his head. Sam let him cry it out then they just sat there, Prowl nuzzling him still and staring miserably out into the star strewn sky. He eventually relaxed and plucked Sam off his shoulder and held him cupped in his hands.

"Nobody's ever done that for me," Prowl said, sounding unsure.

"Well, it's alright. I don't mind. I know you wouldn't do the same for me, but at least you feel better. You're worse off than I was…am."

"On Cybertron it is considered shameful to be the victim of any kind of abuse," Prowl said. "And I knew I should have told somebody, but my two Protectors were very adamant about image. They were the ones abusing me. They would beat me close to death then tell the medics I had gotten banged up hoverboarding, or falling off roofs or other crazy stuff. The medics all around knew me as a troublemaker, though I never got a criminal or juvenile record because I never did any of that. I'm thankful Ratchet hasn't looked up my medical records. Everybody would think I'm insane. Or was, at least."

"My dad liked throwing me into glass. It made more blood that way. It's one reason we had hardwood in the living room. I bled a lot in there."

"I was once whipped with something quite akin to your cat-o-nines."

"I was belted until I bled."

They both stared at each other then began laughing. The tension between them was gone, lost to the stars that twinkled high above them. Prowl lay out on the ground and Sam rested on his chest. They both could hear Bumblebee shouting for his boy, but they ignored it.

"Are you going to tell Optimus and Ratchet?" Sam asked, grimacing as the ache began coming back.

"I don't want to," Prowl said in a small voice. "Everybody will be very angry with me once they find out _I_ was abused. I've treated you so badly, and they'll all want to slice me to pieces. Especially Optimus, and most assuredly Bumblebee."

"It would help to really start to heal you emotionally, not just repressing it and being a cold sparked glitch…No offense," Sam said quickly.

"I deserve that. I am a little emotionless. I can't help it. Emotions got me beat."

"I hear you," Sam said with a soft laugh that quickly turned into a moan.

"What's the matter?"

"Oh, my spine's starting to hurt again. It's past time for my shot of painkiller."

"Well, I suppose we'd better go back in. Or else your medic and your guardian might try to kill me."

Prowl stood, catching Sam in his hands, and walked back to the base, down the rather steep hill and through a grove of trees. The door opened and Bumblebee was on him.

"What did you say to him this time, glitch?"

"I said I would take him to Ratchet. He's in pain."

"Well then what did you do to him?"

"Bee, chill," Sam said, slowly sitting up with a whimper. "It's Primus' fault, not Prowl's, so relax."

Everybody was staring at them, including Optimus.

"What made you two so close?" Sunstreaker suddenly asked.

"We talked a bit," Prowl said.

"About what?" Sideswipe asked incredulously.

"That's none of your business," Prowl growled.

"But it is my business Prowl, so if you don't mind sharing," Optimus said, crossing his arms.

Sam felt Prowl's sparkpulse speed up. He couldn't do that to Prowl. He had to come out in his own time.

"He was asking about my abuse. So I told him about it."

Silence.

"You told him about it? Sam, you didn't have to do that. Especially not to him."

"It's about time I told somebody," Sam said with a shrug.

"But you have plenty of good friends who would gladly listen to you," Ratchet said suspiciously.

"Maybe I didn't need a friend. Maybe I needed Prowl. Besides, we're friends now. Aren't we Prowl?"

"If I must be," Prowl sighed, walking into the medbay. "Thank you," he whispered gratefully, stroking his back tenderly before withdrawing and going back into the main room.

"Sam," Ratchet said as he shut the door. "What did he say that made him seem trustworthy?"

"He's been through some trouble in his life."

Ratchet's interest was piqued. "What kinds of trouble?"

"Now Ratchet, I'm not going to go gossip about Prowl," Sam snapped. "Now, give me the stupid shot."

Ratchet did so a little roughly. Sam winced as he walked out, in a little pain. He shouldn't have sassed Ratchet, but frag it, just because everybody else gossiped about him didn't mean that he would. Everybody had been around Prowl, but he looked as stony as ever. Bumblebee scooped him up and he yelped.

"I knew it! He hurt you!"

"I did not!" Prowl snapped.

"No, he didn't. Ratchet did," Sam said loudly. "He's just pissy that I wouldn't tell him what Prowl told me."

Ratchet looked embarrassed. "I wasn't _that_ rough with you…was I?"

"It's twinging," Sam growled.

"What exactly did Prowl tell you, Sam?" Sunstreaker asked eagerly.

"That is none of your concern. Or Optimus' either," Sam replied. "What Prowl said is between us, and I would ask him to keep what I told him to himself."

"No I'm going to parade around and tell everyone," Prowl said sarcastically.

"Good."

There was an explosion of noise and they were rushed. Sam yelped as Optimus began heading towards him and gave a long leap over to the door. Wow. He didn't know he could jump that far. But he ignored it as he ran out and up the hill. Prowl either chose not to follow, or was restrained from following. Sam stood there and shivered. Why were they all like that towards Prowl? _Maybe_ , Sam thought, _it's because Prowl is, well, Prowl. Maybe it's because he's been so closed for so long that they want just one glimpse of what motivates him, what makes him,_ him. _But still, that's not a good enough reason to betray his trust._

Sam sighed and sat there until Prowl finally arrived. The mech sat down and scooped Sam into his hands then held him close to his chest.

"Things just got more complicated," he sighed. "They want to know about…me."

"You don't have to tell them," Sam said.

"I know. I'm not going to."

"I'm glad I get to know about you," Sam said after a moment's silence.

"And I'm glad I get to know about you, Sam," Prowl said with a smile and a soft purr.


	5. Chapter 5

Time passed and the pain only got worse. Not only that, but there was a silent, but very intense, battle taking place between Prowl and Bumblebee. Sam liked spending time with both of them, but they both refused to spend time with each other. Bumblebee was crazily jealous, and Prowl was afraid of the yellow mech figuring out why he had been mean to the young boy.

Sam was riding with Prowl one day, fighting back pain, when he heard the growl of an engine. He flinched as Bumblebee pulled up beside them.

"Give me my boy," Bumblebee said in a low, deadly tone.

"He is not just yours. We can share him freely."

Bumblebee revved threateningly, but before he could verbally respond, there was an explosion in front of him. Prowl swore and they both threw it in reverse as about ten Decepticons transformed and shot toward them. Prowl and Bumblebee shot backwards, and the former contacted Optimus.

-Optimus! Decepticons in the city! We need every available fighter! Quickly!-

-We're on our way!- Optimus replied.

"Should we split up?" Bumblebee asked.

"Negative!" Prowl exclaimed. "They already outnumber us, and together we have much more of a chance than if we go off by ourselves!"

"We need to get Sam to safety!"

"Agreed!"

They shot down a street then Sam tensed, waiting for the stop he knew was coming. As soon as the car had stopped and the door flew open, Sam leaped out.

"Get to cover!" Bumblebee instructed, transforming and arming his gun. "But stay out of buildings!"

"I've done this before, Bee, believe it or not," Sam exclaimed then ducked down an alley.

He watched as Bumblebee and Prowl aimed down the street. Then Prowl looked ill, and he began backing up. Sam knew that look. He'd never seen it on his own face, but it's the only expression that he knew would fit his feelings when he saw his parents.

"Prowl? What are you doing?" Bumblebee asked backing away with him.

Sam closed his eyes as Cybertronian was spoken, and Prowl's optics turned pink as Bumblebee gasped and looked at him.

"How could you be mean to Sam?"

"I…I don't have to answer to you!" Prowl whimpered.

Guns began firing, and Prowl sobbed and ran away, Bumblebee at his heels. The Decepticons weren't far behind. Sam closed his eyes. His guardian clearly didn't understand the reason. The boy knelt down and pressed his hands against the concrete.

"Primus?" he whispered.

"Yes, Sam?" the mech formed from a puddle down the way.

"I choose you."

"Excellent choice," Primus praised. "Hold still. This will hurt like hell, but it will be over quickly."

The pain was excruciating, and it lasted for a brief eternity. Then it was over. Sam stood up. His clothes were gone. Sam flexed his body then formed a pair of jeans from his own essence. It seemed so natural to do. Sam looked at Primus, who nodded.

"I chose well. You are a beautiful Mini-con. Go now. Show the world your power."

"Yes, sir."

Sam heard gunfire down the street, and took off like a bullet, his surroundings blurring by. Though he was moving faster than a car, he saw every single thing in slow motion. It fascinated him, but he couldn't dwell on it as he saw the Decepticons. Prowl's Protectors were hovering over him, and the Decepticons were laughing as they spoke in Cybertronian.

"Foolish boy. We told you that you would regret your decision to be an Autobot!"

Sam snarled and hit the purple one full speed. The mech yowled and Prowl turned to see Sam. He gaped then smiled.

"Fight back! Don't let them rule your life!" Sam ordered fiercely.

"Yes sir!" Prowl barked happily then fired into his other Protector before freeing Bumblebee.

They fought fiercely, and had downed half of the Decepticons before there was a rumble and the road split down the middle. Trent stood there, but he didn't look normal. He was all black, the literal color, or the absence of it, except for his eyes. His eyes were pure red. There was no mistaking him as anybody else. It was definitely Trent.

"Master found another better vessel!" Trent purred. "Come and face me again!"

Sam cracked his neck. "You two keep fighting. I have to deal with this."

"Yes, sir," they both said.

The Decepticons didn't stop him from going past them to Trent. The bully smirked and took a fighting stance, Sam did the same.

"When I beat you, I will kill your guardian just to prove I'm better than you," Trent promised.

"No banter. You want to fight me, now fight me!"

There was an almighty BOOM as they slammed into each other. When they were flung away from each other, Trent slammed his fist into the road and the earth shook again. Sam broke up a water pipe that was exposed, flinging it at his enemy. It froze with a twitch of Sam's wrist.

Within the next ten minutes, the entire block was destroyed, and the two beings hadn't left a twenty square foot area. They didn't see their audience, both Autobots and Decepticons alike, gaping in disbelief at the raw display of power that they gave off. Sam finally pinned Trent by the throat and sent a megavolt of electricity through him. Trent stilled, and Sam stood, panting. There was a cry of ecstasy and a shout of rage.

"Oh! Mine's better than yours!" Primus laughed joyously.

"Damnable fool!" Unicron snarled, materializing beside his downed Mini-Con. Primus appeared beside Sam, optics glinting in happiness.

"You have done well!" he praised, petting Sam fondly.

"Thank you, sir," Sam replied, smirking at Unicron.

"I can't stand cockiness," Unicron growled.

"He's got too much of it himself," Primus snickered.

Unicron looked behind the two light beings, and grabbed Trent as he shouted, "Decepticons! Retreat!"

Then…it was over. Primus was extremely pleased. "Good boy. Now, go to your friends."

Sam bowed, and walked over to his friends, but…he stopped halfway there when he saw their expressions. When he stopped, Bumblebee and Optimus began to walk to him. Bumblebee knelt down.

"Sam?" he asked.

"Is everything okay, Bee?" Sam queried nervously.

"Are you okay, Sam?" Optimus asked.

"Yeah. Why?"

"You aren't in any pain?" Ratchet asked.

"No. I feel great! Why?"

"Have you seen yourself?" Prowl asked.

"No. Why?" Sam sounded slightly panicked. "What's wrong with the way I look?!"

"Nothing's wrong with it, per se," Bumblebee said slowly. "But it's different. We need a full length mirror."

"No problem," Sam said with a smile then waved his hand.

Water arched up and solidified into a mirror. Sam's smile disappeared when he saw himself. When he had seen Trent, it was only natural for him to look completely black with red optics. But himself? Sam touched the mirror, running his eyes up and down his form. He was all silver and completely naked, save for a pair of black shorts that he clearly remembered pulling out of himself. His eyes were pure blue with a single speck of white light in the center of each that had to be his pupils. Sam swallowed and backed up a few steps.

"This was where it was all heading," he said numbly.

"What's it?"

"The agonizing changes. The metal spreading out. This is the finished product."

"Wow," Jazz said, sending his holo-form out. "You look pretty cool, mech!"

"Mech. Yes, that's appropriate."

"It is?"

"Yes. I am no longer a human. I am a mech, just as you said," Sam said quietly. He sharply heard humans whispering. "We need to get back home."

"Of course!"

They were soon home. Sam lay on the berth, and Prowl walked up after a long conversation with the others.

"They're surprisingly kind to me," the Autobot said with a nod. "They understand."

"It is surprising. And I don't mean that as a put down," Sam said. "I'm always surprised when they love me. But they do. I'm starting to realize that."

"I think it'll take me awhile to see that," Prowl admitted.

"We've got time. My life expectancy is now longer than yours," Sam said with a smirk.

Prowl laughed. "True. I think we'll get through it together though."

Sam nodded and they sat there for a while. Prowl finally shifted.

"I have a name for you."

"Really?" Sam asked, looking up.

"What would that be?" Bumblebee asked as the rest of the Autobots came forward.

"Well, from what I saw, he can control water and electricity. So…Silverstorm?"

The Autobots thought about that then started nodding. Sam beamed.

"It sounds perfect. I like it."

There was a noise and Primus materialized he nodded, and said in a solemn voice. "Arise, Silverstorm, to your calling."

"I will," Silverstorm said, smiling happily. "With my friends."

"I would have it no other way," Primus said fondly.

Silverstorm took a deep breath and let it out. He realized something in that moment. He was happy. Truly, truly happy. The tears that fell were those of joy, and all knew that because he smiled. They smiled with him.


End file.
